Is Hindi or English beneficial as a link language?

Residents of only 12 out of 35 states and union territories (UTs) reported Hindi as their first choice for communication (Census 2011). But there is a caveat. “Hindi” is an umbrella term that encompasses 56 languages ​​(mother tongues) including Bhojpuri, Rajasthani, Hindi and Chhattisgarhi. While 43% of Indians speak “Hindi”, only 26% speak Hindi exclusively as their mother tongue.

This raises the question whether Hindi needs to be made a contact language. This is in reference to Union Home Minister Amit Shah saying that when citizens of states communicate with each other, they should do so in the “language of India” with Hindi as an alternative to English. This drew criticism from the opposition. Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President DK Shivakumar said that Bengaluru has become the IT capital of India because of the English language.

The argument used to promote Hindi as an alternative to English, as it is spoken by the majority, cannot be valid as it is majoritarian. Instead, we need to answer a utilitarian question: Which language would be beneficial to citizens as they seek a better life – Hindi or English? In other words, will native Hindi speakers benefit from learning English or should Hindi be imposed on the non-Hindi speaking population for their “benefit”?

A comparison of the Human Development Index (HDI) of states and union territories shows that regions with a higher number of English speakers also have higher HDI scores (Chart 1), while states with a higher share of Hindi speakers HDI scores in the U.S. are relatively low (Chart 2)). This means that there is a positive correlation between a higher standard of living and a higher share of English speakers.

It is also borne in numbers related to migration. More people from Hindi speaking states are migrating to non-Hindi speaking areas in search of better livelihood. In the 2017 Economic Survey, analysis of railway passenger data traveling in unreserved coaches was used as a proxy to measure work-related migration. “This class of travel serves the less affluent, who are most likely to travel for work-related reasons,” the report said. The movements of nine million such passengers between 2011 and 2016 were considered and those traveling less than 200 km were ignored.

Map 4 shows the heat map of net passenger flow for FY 2015-16 at the state level. States like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Punjab and Delhi saw net migration. The number of migrants in these states was more than those who migrated in other states. Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chhattisgarh recorded high net migration.

Adding this to Map 3 shows that the states that recorded net migration roughly correspond to the states that have the largest number of Hindi speakers. In contrast, the states that recorded net migration roughly corresponded to less Hindi-speaking regions. The exceptions were Kerala, Odisha and to a lesser extent Maharashtra. Map 3 shows not only those who speak Hindi as their mother tongue, but also those who mention it as a second or third language of preference (Hindi as a universal word).

An analysis of the 2011 Census data (Table 5) also shows that net migration to Hindi states, where Hindi is spoken by at least 50% of the population, is negative. This indicates that migrant outflows were higher than inflows in these states. In non-Hindi states, net migration was positive. This pattern was observed for all types of migrations made for work and education.

In short, relatively more people migrate to non-Hindi states than Hindi-speaking states, and there is a strong correlation between a region’s HDI and a higher share of English speakers. This suggests that there is a strong case for English to be the contact language instead of Hindi, contrary to the estimates of the central government.